Changes

The scriptures referred to are Galatians 4:4-7 and Philippians 2:5-11.

Made your New Year's resolutions yet? If you think about it, what we designate as New Year's Day is arbitrary. The church year begins with Advent, 4 Sundays before Christmas. Chinese New Year always falls between January 21 and February 20. In ancient Rome the year began in March. The Jewish New Year once fell in spring 2 weeks before Passover but later was moved to the fall 10 days before Yom Kippur. And of course for the federal government the fiscal year begins on October 1. But you have to start the year sometime, so January 1^st is as good as any.

The idea behind New Year's resolutions is that if you are going to start something new you might as well do it at the same time that a new year begins. Still it would be stupid to put off doing some things until January 1^st. Like getting sober. Or quiting smoking. Or beginning to exercise.

But sometimes the beginning of the year is a perfect time to consider making changes, like when a change is coming that year anyway. That's what's happening for all of us here. I'm retiring after Easter. And that means changes to my life and to both churches.

Some people talk as if change is always a good thing. Today it's called disruption and some people, especially in business, are proud to call themselves disruptors. But while disrupting a dictatorship or changing an ineffective way to do something is good, some changes, like getting sick or experiencing a natural disaster or a war, are bad.

That's not to say that some good can't come out of such terrible changes. Death is the ultimate change for the worse. In 1825 painter and inventor Samuel Morse was in New York for a commission when in New Hampshire his wife had a heart attack after giving birth to their third child. By the time Morse got a letter telling him of his wife's death and he was able to get home, she had already been buried. Morse wished he had found out earlier but there was no way to get word to him faster. So he started working on a way to send messages quicker and over distances. He came up with the concept of the single-wire telegraph and developed the Morse code so that messages could be sent in real time 30 characters a minute. His response to a tragedy was to come up with a way that others need not suffer as he had.

God takes the prize when it comes to making something good out of something bad. He created humans in his image, which means among other things, we have the capacity to use our intelligence and creativity to do so much good. But we almost immediately started misusing his gifts to make things good for ourselves and worse for others. We have used our ingenuity not only to make things that help people, like tools and medicine, but also to make weapons that harm and kill others. We have created systems of government that make life safer and better for its citizens and we have created systems of government that oppress or enslave some people while making more prosperous others who show loyalty to those in power.

So God gave us his law, which told us the things we should and shouldn't do. (e.g., Exodus 20:1-17, Leviticus 19:9-18, 29-36) But that wasn't enough. In fact, when people weren't ignoring the law, they perverted it, observing the letter and being technically correct, but not acting according to the spirit of it. They took that which should help us with our relationships to both God and to our fellow humans, and turned it in a method of dividing people from both. People have even made religion into a weapon, to harm and oppress others.

So God does something new. As Paul says in our passage from Galatians, “When the fullness of time had come, God sent his Son, born of a woman, born under the law, in order to redeem those who were under the law...” What does he mean by the “fullness of time?” We're not sure but it could be a number of things. Jesus was born in the time of the Roman empire. It was a ruthless military dictatorship but it did do some things right. The empire built good roads, primarily so that its army could go anywhere within its borders and put down rebellions. Rome suppressed piracy, which made the Mediterranean Sea safe for travel as well. These things also made it easier for Christian missionaries to take the gospel to every corner of the empire. They allowed Paul to stay in communication with the churches he founded by letter. And since Rome was in large part reconquering the remnants of Alexander the Great's empire, they inherited a vast territory where everyone spoke Greek at least as a second language. This allowed the gospel to be spread to people everywhere, regardless of their native tongue. Whatever else Paul meant, he had to know about these advantages to the mission God gave him.

So God sent his Son at a time when his message could be heard by a huge number of people, potentially the 59 to 76 million people in the empire. But this time the message was not just a bunch of do's and don't's. The message was all about Jesus, who he is and what he has done for us. And in our two passages from Paul's letters he elaborates on those two topics.

Who is Jesus? In Philippians, Paul says Christ was in the form of God. The Greek word does not mean merely the outward appearance but the embodiment of the essence of something. Cups may come in somewhat different shapes but the essential form is present in all of them, distinguishing a cup from, say, a bowl or a spoon. By saying that Christ was in the form of God, Paul is saying that Jesus Christ is divine.

He goes on to say that Christ did not regard equality with God as something to be exploited. Now the Greek word the NRSV translates “exploited” means to be eagerly grasped. I think a better translation in this context would be “clung to.” Christ has equality with God but did not cling to it or try to hang onto it. Why? Because his Father was sending him to live in the world as a human being. That's a big change.

So he emptied himself. Of what? His prerogatives as God. He gave up his omnipotence, omniscience and omnipresence to take on the form of a human. As J.B. Phillips put it, Jesus is the vast, unimaginable and eternal God focused into a single human existing in time and space. In a sense, Jesus, the Word, is God translated into a form we can grasp.

In practical terms, this means Jesus limited his use of his divine powers. We see this when he is tempted in the wilderness to make bread out of stones or float from the pinnacle of the temple, and he refuses both times. (Matthew 4:1-7) He refrains from calling on God for help when he is arrested. (Matthew 26:53) He doesn't know everything. He is able to be amazed. (Matthew 8:10) And he admits that in his time on earth not even he knows when the end of the age will come. (Matthew 24:36) One effect of this is, as it says in Hebrews, he can sympathize with our weaknesses and limitations. (Hebrews 4:15)

Paul says Christ took the form (same word as before) of a slave. In other words, he gave up his place as the God we should serve and took up the form of a servant. As Jesus said, “For the Son of Man did not come to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.” (Mark 10:45) This is a big change. This is not something that you'd think God would do.

But not only does Jesus voluntarily give up his powers and position as God, he humbles himself and becomes obedient to his Father to the point of death—even the painful and humiliating death of being crucified. That is the worst thing that could happen to Jesus. This change is above and beyond what we would expect from even a loving God.

And why does he do it? As Paul says in Galatians, “so that we might receive adoption as children.” Paul uses the metaphor of adoption because an adopted child is legally entitled to the same rights as a natural born child. In ancient times childless men could and did adopt slaves and make them their heirs. Abraham was planning on doing that at one point because it was starting to look like he was not going to have a son. (Genesis 15:2-3) So in essence it would be the reverse of what Christ did. Though he was God's Son, he takes on the form of a servant. Though we are at our best servants of God, through Christ we can be adopted by God. To paraphrase C.S. Lewis, the Son of God became a human to enable humans to become sons and daughters of God.

A lot of people think that humans are automatically God's children. But as Lewis points out, we are actually God's creations. Though created in his image, we are not the same kind of being that God is, any more than a sculpture is the same thing as the person it is modeled on. Or to put it in other words, our relationship to God is like Pinocchio's relationship to Geppetto. Geppetto made Pinocchio; he didn't beget him. The puppet might look like a boy but he isn't really one. Now Geppetto wants Pinocchio to be his son, and Pinocchio wants that as well, but his creation will have to changed into a living human being like his maker. In the same way, for us to become God's children we have to be transformed spiritually. The person who makes that possible is Jesus.

By taking on the brunt of the evil we have done to God's creation and to each other, Jesus makes it possible for us to start over. As Paul says, “There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.” (Romans 8:1) Because of what Jesus did on the cross, we are forgiven for our sins. God graciously accepts Jesus' righteousness as ours. Our status has changed. We are able to be adopted by God.

But we do have a part to play. In Florida children over the age of 12 must consent to their adoption. And we too must consent to God adopting us. That's one reason not all humans are God's children. Some people do not trust or love God and do not want him as their Father. Again as Lewis said, some people say to God, “Thy will be done.” And to those who won't, God says, “Very well, your will be done. You don't want any part of me? So be it.” But since God is the source of all goodness, that is not a wise decision.

Children are supposed to take after their parents. But how can we be like God? Paul says, “And because you are children, God has sent the Spirit of his Son into our hearts, crying, 'Abba! Father!'” In most situations, we know what we should do. But our spirits often rebel against it. So God sends the Spirit of his Son, the Spirit that empowered Jesus in his earthly mission, into our hearts to enable us to follow Jesus. And, as we see in small children, we are motivated to be like our Father out of love for him.

And this really helps us in those situations where it is not obvious what we should do. The Bible does not spell out what to do in everything we might encounter in life. We live in a different time and a different culture and face issues that didn't exist 2000 years ago. Like the internet, weapons of mass destruction, end of life decisions, democracy, corporations with the rights of persons, individuals with personal wealth rivaling that of entire nations, and the tremendous freedom of choice we have. We need to stay in touch with the Spirit of God in Christ to guide us in the complicated decisions we face today.

As I said, this year will bring changes that will require decisions on things we haven't faced in a while. I have been priest-in-charge at St. Francis for more than 20 years and interim pastor at Lord of the Seas for more than 10. Decisions that in the past I would normally make will have to be made by others. Things we have done one way for decades may have to be done differently. Some things will change. And change brings uncertainty and uncertainty brings discomfort.

So make one of your resolutions to rededicate yourself to taking up your cross daily and following Jesus. And to have that same mind in you that was in Jesus, a mindset that does not cling to the past or to privilege but is willing to humble itself, and be obedient even to the point of making sacrifices for the good of all, so that Jesus Christ is seen as Lord of all.

And remember—one thing will not change: “Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, and today and forever!” (Hebrews 13:8) The specific ways we show this may change but not his love and grace. And if we stay connected to him through his Spirit, God within us, we will be able to carry out God's will for us, whatever this or any year brings our way.